Stan Ridgway:Running With The Carnival Lyrics

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Oh, down by the river where the wildflower growAll the people comin' to a carnival showGot my little brother Bobby here, so come alongOh, we gotta get there early or the seats are all goneHey, now, you can smell the sawdust up your nose for a mileThere's a bearded lady and that man's a crocodileSlip inside the tent and see the giant rubber manOh, I bet his momma's proud of him, he's doin' what he canDoin' what he can.Oh, I wonder if they'd let me join up with 'em if I couldGet down to the city, get off this hill for goodYeah, I'm tired of totin' water, feedin' chickens in a shackI'm runnin' away to the carnival, an' never comin' backNope! Never comin' back.Now, the strong man got no hair, he can lift a heavy stoneMonkey woman's screechin', in her nose there's a boneThe cracker barrel's open and the cider's filled with fliesOh, take a seat down in front, 'cause the curtain's 'bout to rise

Yeah, wander past the fortune teller, readin' someone's handWhat future does she see while we listen to the band?And I can hear the music now from that calliopeOh, when the carnival's in town there's always somethin' new to seeSomethin' new to see...Oh, the people in the carnival, they all act just like kinAnd you can't be in the middle when you're sleepin' with a Siamese twinOh, the dog-faced boy lifts his leg out in the pourin' rainWhen you're travellin' with the carnival, there really is no shameNope, no shame.Down by the river where the wildflower growAll the folks are packin' up that carnival to goI guess I'll soon be leavin', then, but you can come with meAnd we all run to the carnival and see what we would beRepeat and fade:Run, run, runnin' with the carnival